RELATION OF MEDIA EXPOSURE TO EATING DISORDER SYMPTOMATOLOGY - AN EXAMINATION OF MEDIATING MECHANISMS

Although investigators have postulated that the thin ideal for women e spoused in the media is related to the high rates of eating disorders among females, little research has examined the relation between media exposure and eating pathology. This study assessed the relation of me dia exposure to eating disorder symptoms and tested whether gender-rol e endorsement, ideal-body stereotype internalization, and body satisfa ction mediated this effect. In data from 238 female undergraduates, st ructural equation modeling revealed a direct effect of media exposure on eating disorder symptoms. Furthermore, mediational linkages were fo und for gender-role endorsement, ideal body stereotype internalization , and body satisfaction. The results support the assertion that intern alization of sociocultural pressures mediate the adverse effects of th e thin ideal.